I would like to introduce my new book Breaker Morant: The Final Roundup Joe West & Roger Roper 978-1-4456-5965-7

Kitchener's scapegoat or a murderous war criminal? The truth about Breaker Morant revealed!

Over 100 years ago Harry Harbord Morant (the Breaker) was shot by a firing squad in Pretoria. Thus began his ascension to national hero: over the years, some Australians have managed to turn his disgrace into distinction, to the point where a vocal body is now seeking a British pardon for Morant.

Workhouse-born Edwin Murrant, educated by the Freemasons, emigrated on a £1 passage to Australia at the age of nineteen and found work on a cattle station in Queensland. Murrant spent the next sixteen years in Australia as a bushman, balladeer and black sheep renowned for his riding skills. Changing his name to Morant, he claimed to be the son of an admiral. At the start of the Anglo-Boer war he joined the army and went to South Africa, eventually becoming a lieutenant in the Bushveldt Carbineers, an irregular unit fighting in Northern Transvaal. Enraged by the death of a friend in battle, he instigated the murder of prisoners by way of revenge. A missionary who knew too much was also killed under suspicious circumstances.

Arrested and tried, he was sentenced to death and shot. Australians suggest he did not have a 'fair go' and was martyred by Lord Kitchener. Others remain fixed in their opinions: he took the law into his own hands and paid the ultimate price for his crimes. This intensively researched book, featuring a wealth of new information, reveals the truth behind the legend of Breaker Morant.

I must admit that my only knowledge growing up of Breaker Morant was through the excellent movie of the same name, which was easily on a par with other Australian war movies such as Gallipoli and The Lighthorsemen. It is interesting that in Australia there still exists a heated debate as to the guilt or innocence of Morant and the continuing belief that it was all a conspiracy of the British high command to use Morant as a scapegoat. I found your book to be a balanced account of the affair, and I especially enjoyed the in-depth investigation into the background of Morant, his origins, and various wanderings around Australia before embarking for South Africa.

Your book remains for now perhaps the definitive account of the saga and as such a worthy addition by anyone interested in this subject.

“The chance discovery of a treasure trove of films shot nearly a half century ago has shed new light on the saga of Harry “Breaker” Morant and his sidekick Peter Handcock, who were executed for war crimes in 1902.

“….. a witness to one of their killings can be heard saying: “They were as guilty as sin.” The evidence of Muir Churton, who fought with the infamous Bushveldt Carbineers during the latter stages of the Boer War, is captured on film made in 1971

“At 19, Churton was the youngest member of the BVC when he joined up in 1901.He was 91 when the film was made and died soon after.”

“….. Churton explains why he joined the BVC “They were paying seven shillings a day while the rest paid five shillings a day … plus, it was something new; something interesting.”.”